British Army
The British Army is an army featured in Warfare 1917. Description During the First World War, the British Army was known for it's keen use of Artillery and pioneering of the Tank. Always pushing forward the British Army took on an offensive doctrine, while this lead to the deaths of many, ground gained was the all important goal. History The British Army was formed from the merger of the English and Scottish armies in 1707, when the Kingdom of Great Britain was formed, and is still present to this day. It has attained a reputation for marksmanship and discipline, with an account from the early years of World War I having a repulsed German force claim they encountered large amounts of machine guns, when in truth, they were groups of highly-trained riflemen. Unfortunately, these skilled soldiers would be ground down by attrition, and poorly-trained conscripts would take their place for most of the war. Uniform The British troops wear a Brodie helmet and a 1902 Pattern Service Dress, which consists of a thick woolen tunic, dyed khaki, two breast pockets, two smaller pockets, an internal pocket, rifle patches, shoulder straps, rank insignia, trade badges and Long Service and Good Conduct stripes, stiffened peak cap with a leather strap, puttees and ammunition boots with hobnail soles. Weapons 'Webley Mk VI' The Webley series of revolvers was the standard issue sidearm of the British Army in one mark or another from 1887 to 1963, and possessed an automatic cartridge extraction system in every mark. The Mk VI was adopted in 1915 and proved to be a very reliable and hardy weapon, well suited to the conditions in the trenches. Used only by Officers. 'Short Magazine Lee-Enfield Mk III' The Lee-Enfield series of bolt-action rifles was first issued to British troops in 1895, and is still in service with various Commonwealth reserve and police forces today. The Short Magazine Mk III was adopted in 1905, and enabled a trained rifleman to fire 20 to 30 aimed rounds a minute, making it the fastest military bolt-action rifle of its day. Used by all infantry except the Officer. 'Lewis Gun' Invented by the US Army Colonel it is named after, the Lewis Gun served with the British from 1915 to 1946. Whilst slower-firing than the contemporary Vickers machine gun, it was far more portable and easier to manufacture. These guns were in high demand during WW1 and were often mounted on aircraft and tanks, or used by Machine Gunners in the trenches. 'Mills Bomb' Invented by William Mills and adopted by the British Army in 1915, the initial No.5 version was the first modern fragmentation grenade in the world. The updated No.36M, developed in 1917, would remain as the standard issue hand grenade for the British all the way into the 70's. Assault Teams during World War 1 have used both when attacking trenches. 'Mark IV' The Mark IV was an up-armoured version of the Mark I tank, which went into production in May 1917 and took part in the first tank vs tank battle in history. The "Male" version features 2 short-barreled 6-pounder guns mounted in movable side sponsons (for reducing the width of the tank, easing rail transportation), three Lewis Guns, an external fuel tank and rails on the roof for an unditching beam. 'Artillery' The British army utilized many types of artillery pieces during World War 1, including the Ordinance QF 18-pounder, their most numerous field gun at over 10,000 built, the BL 6-inch Mk VII naval gun, used for neutralizing defenses, and the BL 60-pounder gun, their heaviest artillery gun. All of these were typically moved by draught horses or Holt caterpillar tractors. 'Mortar' The British used several types of mortars to provide close support to the infantry, including the Stokes mortar, 2-inch mortar and 9.45-inch mortar. 'Chemical Weapons' The British used chlorine and mustard gas, as well as French stocks of phosgene. Units 'Riflemen' A 6-man squad equipped with bolt-action rifles. Effective against other infantry, but are vulnerable to nearly everything. 'Assault Team' A 4-man squad specialized in clearing trenches. They use rush tactics and are equipped with bolt-action rifles and grenades. 'Lewis Gunners' A 3-man squad equipped with bolt-action rifles and a light machine gun. They are highly effective against infantry when entrenched, and are the only infantry in the game with an automatic weapon. 'Sniper' A skilled sharpshooter equipped with a bolt-action rifle. They are strong against infantry at long range and are highly accurate. 'Officer' An officer that provides a damage bonus to surrounding units. He only carries a revolver, making him a poor choice for combat, and morale drops sharply if he is killed. 'Tank' An armored vehicle equipped with a pair of 6 pounder main guns and three machine guns that is invulnerable to all infantry (except Assault Team grenades), but is vulnerable to fire support. Category:Armies